Prophecy
by Phoenix Spirit Fighter
Summary: Post-Eclipse. Following the eclipse, it seems as though things will be turning around. But when DG loses control of her magic and starts hearing voices, a discovery below the streets of the city will reveal that the end was only the beginning.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: _Tin Man_ and it's respective characters, script quotes and plot fragments all belong to Sci Fi Channel.**

**Summary: Following the eclipse, it seems as though the O.Z. and its royal family are headed for a happy ever after. But when DG is the only one who hears strange voices on the wind and she loses what little control she had of her magic, it will take a discovery far below the streets of Central City before her friends and family realize that the end was only the beginning.**

* * *

"She melted!"

_Understatement of the annual, little sister,_ Az thought, smiling to herself. But it was true: all that remained of the dark witch was a tarlike puddle that glistened in the residual light of the eclipse. From the corner of her eye, Az saw her sister turn, releasing the grasp she had on her hand, a shy, yet jubilant smile crossing her face. Before either sister could stop, they had wrapped their arms around each other in a warm embrace, reveling in the light that flowed between them.

A warm wind drifted by, a promise of brighter days that toyed with the sisters' hair, ebony strands flowing together as the battlefield below cleared of dust and gunpowder clouds.

_"The majestic queen of the O.Z. . . ."_

DG shivered, stiffening in her older sister's arms as the breeze grew stronger for a moment before fading away.

"Deege? What is it?" Az pulled away, frowning at the nervous fear in her sister's pale blue eyes.

DG didn't respond for a moment, her forehead creasing as she glanced around the balcony.

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

Another breeze, stiffer than before, whispered past them, and the younger princess shivered again, forcing her to wrap her arms around herself to keep the goose bumps from rising on her arms.

_"Will bear two lovely daughters she . . . ."_

"It almost sounded like . . ." she shook her head, dismissing the thought. "Forget it, it was just the wind. I guess I'm getting tired, everything must be finally catching up to me."

Az nodded, but knew she couldn't just "forget it" as her sister told her to.

"You don't have to worry about anything anymore," she framed her younger sister's face in her hands, grinning at the faint glow that emanated from her touch. "You did it, you saved all of us, the entire O.Z," she embraced her sister again, and DG leaned into the warmth of the light they shared. "Everything is going to be alright."

_I hope so_, the younger princess thought.

They stood there for some long minutes before a glow not from their light illuminated the balcony. The two sisters looked up, releasing sighs of relief as a sun slowly began to move from behind the moon. The smile on DG's face dimmed, however, when the second sun remained locked in place, its light blocked.

"One is still stuck . . ." she murmured, disappointment flowing through her.

"You still brought the light back, Deeg, that's what's important. Don't worry, if a machine can be built that can stop the suns, then one can be built to get one of them moving again," Az drew her gaze from the brightening light back to her sister. "Come on, mom and dad are waiting."

DG's smile widened slightly, and she nodded. They took each other's hand, turning to leave the balcony and find their parents.

"_The first to light she will be shown . . . The second, to darkness, will be drawn . . . will be drawn . . . will be drawn."_

A shiver passed through the younger princess again, her grip on her sister's hand tightening instinctively, and the breeze passed by without another sound. Glancing over her shoulder, DG bit her bottom lip nervously as she noted the direction the breeze had come from.

_North._


	2. Chapter 2

**Ch 2**

"Concentrate, DG, let the light flow through you."

The princess in question gritted her teeth, trying to resist the urge to turn Tutor into a cat. Really, she got it already; did he have to repeat the same words on a loop for an _hour_? And what was with this doll-spinning stuff? Ever since she and her friends had relayed their whole story to her family, including how she'd managed to escape the Gale mausoleum using her magic, both her mother and Tutor had agreed to let her magic advance as it would. Her lessons now consisted of learning to control her light as it grew rather than learning more intricate spells, though Tutor seemed to find some strange delight in seeing how far her magic would go if he pushed her. Considering that she'd accidentally given Cain a lion's tail and rabbit ears a few days ago, the shape-shifter really needed to back off.

But, at least today's lesson was almost over. Tutor always began and ended each session with this ridiculous doll spinning, and DG was ready to escape this obnoxious stuff and hide away with her sketchbook and charcoals. Or maybe go to her room and nurse the giant headache she could feel building up.

She didn't think her lack of sleep was helping much. In the two weeks since the eclipse, strange dreams had flooded her mind every night, though she could never remember them as clearly as she wanted to. Maybe if she could, she'd know why she woke up every night with her skin crawling and her skull throbbing, while the echo of some distant voice whispered words she could never remember. "Concentrate, DG, let the light flow through you."

DG sighed, but brushed a stray hair from her eyes, keeping the doll spinning in its perfect pirouette. A breeze blew by, toying with her ebony-colored locks, sending a sudden chill down her spine.

"_The second, to darkness, will be drawn . . . will be drawn . . . will be drawn."_

Her head spun instinctively toward the voice, though she knew that no one would be there. In that same instant, a pulse of magic broke free from her control, reaching out from her fingertips and setting the doll ablaze.

"DG!"

She took a step back as the charred lump of cloth and porcelain fell to the ground in front of her, her brow furrowing in surprise. "Now, really, DG, I understand that you've tired of this exercise, but that's the fifth doll in two weeks!"

"Sorry," she mumbled in confusion. "I didn't mean to."

"This is why we've been working so much on control. Imagine if that had been a spell you were casting on a friend," the portly man bent down to retrieve the doll. "I think it would have taken Mr. Cain much longer than a few days to forgive you."

"I said I'm sorry!" the princess cried, her voice bordering on a scream as her irritation turned into irrational anger. "If you're so worried about those precious dolls of yours then find something different for me to practice on!" She turned with a huff, scooping up her art supplies where she had deposited them on a nearby bench, and stalked away toward the far end of the garden.

The shape-shifter watched the irate young woman until she disappeared into a grove of trees, shaking his head and considering putting in his resignation.

"You have quite a knack for makin' the kid angry, you know that?"

Tutor glanced over his shoulder to respond, but he frowned when the only other living creature nearby was a large brown rabbit. Catching a glimpse of the long, straw-colored tail that the animal was trying to keep hidden, he gave a frustrated sigh and shook his head again.

"It's nice to know I'm not the only one. What did you do this time?"

"Tried to get her to talk to me. Am I the only one who's noticed that she's not sleeping right?" the rabbit sat up on its haunches, scratching at one ear.

"Well, you do have an ear for noticing that sort of thing."

"Funny, pooch, real funny. Can you just fix this already?"

Tutor nodded and waved his hand. The rabbit shook for a moment, and then disappeared in a cloud of smoke, which cleared to reveal a very ruffled-looking Tin Man.

"What I don't get is why you can't do the same thing for these," Cain grumbled, dusting himself off and motioning to the large half-lop ears that sprouted from the top of his head.

"I can't because I don't know what spells DG used. There had to have been two of them, one for the ears and one for the tail; but when you count in how they reacted with each other and how they react with other spells, you have to account for any number of combinations she could have used."

"So I'm stuck like this?" the Tin Man growled, not completely unlike a lion, as he folded his ears accordion-style over the top of his head and covered them with his fedora. It looked as though the hat was levitating over his head, but at least the ears were covered.

"You know, it would probably be easier to just leave them out in the open."

"Not in this lifetime, Dog-man. I get enough from the other guards about the tail. So, what do you think, am I stuck like this?" he crossed his arms, the tufted end of his tail twitching in the grass.

"I don't think so, but you'd have to ask DG. Only the mage who casts a mixed spell can properly undo it, even if they don't know what it was."

"Deege knows how to do that?"

"I believe so. She was able to change Glitch back after giving him wings and a monkey's tail last week. Are you sure you want to risk it?" the shape-shifter asked, holding up the blackened remains of the doll.

Cain's gaze flickered to the object uncertainly. He still nodded, however, and started down the stone-paved path that the princess had taken.

* * *

"Kid, you over here?"

DG rolled her eyes, sighing quietly and wishing that her self-appointed bodyguard could just take a hint for once.

"Leave me alone, Cain."

Cain paused, finally catching a glimpse of DG's sneakers where she was hidden by a giant oak tree.

"Sorry, Kiddo, that's not in my job description."

Another aggravated sigh from behind the tree, and the girl's feet disappeared as she pulled her knees up to her chest. The Tin Man frowned; she was trying to pull into herself, to block the world out.

"What do you want?"

"I don't want anything. I'm just trying to keep an eye on you."

There was no response from her hiding place, and Cain wasn't going to push, so he hunkered down under his own tree.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"We don't have to talk about anything."

More silence, and this time it stretched on. Birds sang in the trees across the garden, though the small grove they were sitting in was noiseless. Cain could hear the princess flipping through her sketchbook, but it almost sounded like she was going back and forth to the same pages. He didn't think she had filled up that much of the book yet, it was still fairly new. At least, he thought it was. DG's magic had evolved at such an alarming rate that a mere two days after the eclipse she was pulling her belongings from the Otherside. Her choice of clothing had ruffled her parents' feathers somewhat, though they had been appeased when she agreed to wear dresses when the occasion called for it. Her motorcycle, in particular, had caused quite a stir when it crash-landed in one of the parlors and broke a chair into splinters and fire tinder. By now the girl had amassed so many art supplies that it was near impossible to keep track of anything.

DG sighed again, though this time it just sounded tired. Cain frowned at the quiet noise, and when he heard her sniffle quietly he got to his feet and approached the tree she was sitting next to.

"Kiddo?"

She reached up and quickly brushed a tear away. "Are you goin' to turn me back into a rabbit if I sit down?"

She shook her head, and the Tin Man sat down next to her at the base of the tree. DG closed her sketchbook, though she kept one hand between the pages to mark her spot. He watched her for a moment, noticing how she carefully avoided looking at him. "The pooch kinda hit a nerve, didn't he?"

"I just lost control, that's all," she replied, her voice wavering.

"Because Toto pushed you."

"Because I have to learn _how_ to control my magic, Cain! How am I going to learn my breaking point if I never reach it in the first place?"

"Is that you talkin', or the dog?"

"It's me! I can't control my magic on my own! It's getting to be that I can't even control it with Tutor's help!" she slammed her book on the ground, and was suddenly up on her feet. Cain's brow furrowed as she paced back and forth in front of him, and he was up off the ground as well when he realized she was shaking from head to foot. He tried to stop her as she went by him, wrapping one arm over her shoulders.

"Deege . . . ."

"Don't touch me!" she shrieked, jerking away from him and pushing his arm away. Alarmed by her violent reaction, Cain barely had time to dodge the crackling ball of light that flew from her hand toward the tree they had just been sitting under. Pulling her against him, he dragged her behind another tree a split second before the ground shuddered and the air was filled with slivers of charred wood. DG, who had been on edge before, nearly jumped out of her skin at the explosion, and Cain had to grab hold of her wrists when her hands rushed up to guard her face as a cloud of smoke and ash blew by them.

"Easy, kiddo," he murmured as it went quiet once again, though he could hear voices shouting to each other across the garden. Her knees threatened to give out from under her, so he carefully lowered them to the ground, letting her sit back against the tree.

"Commander Cain! Princess Dorothy!"

"Father! Can you hear us?"

"Yeah, Jeb, I can hear you fine! We're okay!"

"What happened?"

"Magic malfunction."

" . . . .What?"

"I'll explain later, son, just send someone to get Az and Queen Lavender!"

"No!" DG choked out, shivering harder than ever, and Cain glanced at her to find bright streams of blood gushing from her nose. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, quickly folded it and held it to her nose to staunch the flow.

"Nix that last order, son. We just need a minute to get our bearings. I'll see you up at the palace in a bit." He didn't wait for a reply before turning his attention back to DG. "Tilt your head forward, Deege; it'll bleed more, but it'll heal faster." His hand went to her wrist to check her pulse, his eyebrows knitting in concern. "Your heart's racin'; take some deep breaths and try to calm down." He gently stroked her hair, watching her carefully as she fought to follow his directions. The girl reached up and rubbed at her eyes, her breath hitching slightly as her nerves slowly settled. A stiff breeze gusted through the glen, pushing away the drifting remains of the tree and allowing sunlight to shine through where the giant oak had been standing. DG's brow creased as she glanced up through a clearing in the canopy above them. The two suns were side by side in the sky, one shining brightly as it traveled its path, its twin's light barely visible around the outline of the frozen moon it was bound to. She coughed at the bitter metallic taste at the back of her throat, turning her face back down as another chill raised goosebumps down her arms. "Deege, what's wrong?" the Tin Man asked quietly as she wrapped her arms around herself.

She glanced at him, not missing his careful wording of the question. Of course he wouldn't ask her if she was okay, because he could tell she wasn't. He wouldn't ask her whether something was wrong, either, because something obviously was.

"I'm just tired," she murmured, her gaze dropping to the ground. She was ready to bolt, and he knew it. If he hadn't had the bridge of her nose firmly pinched in his hand she would have been gone and locked in her rooms by now.

"I'm not surprised," he replied, though his tone wasn't accusatory. "When was the last time you slept?"

"Last night."

"For how long?"

"Two hours, maybe three."

"Deege . . . ."

"Can we talk about this later?" she interrupted, rubbing at her eyes again, her hand shaking as her voice wavered.

Cain hesitated, and she glanced at him. "Please, Cain, I promise that I'll talk about it later. Right now all I want to do is go inside and lie down for a while."

He regarded her for another second, and finally nodded.

"Alright, Deege, it can wait. Here, tilt your head back for a minute, let me take a look at your nose."

She slowly complied, and Cain carefully lifted the bloodstained handkerchief from her face for a moment before putting it back. "It's still flowin' pretty fast. We'll see if Raw can heal it. Come on, I'll walk you back to your rooms." He held her arm as she stood, letting her take over holding the cloth under her nose. His gaze fell upon the unfortunate tree as they turned to leave the grove, the sight of which almost stopped him in his tracks. While most of the roots and bottom of the trunk still remained, all of the branches were gone and from about chest-height up the trunk had been split in two and blackened, as though it had been struck by lightning.

Trying to keep his mind off of the destruction that the youngest princess had caused, the Tin Man glanced around as they made their way through the garden and toward the palace. Already a gardening crew, made up mostly of resistance fighters who had turned in their weapons for a slightly less dangerous job, had gathered in preparation for removing what was left of the tree. A few of the workers cast a glance at the princess and her bodyguard as they went by, as did many of the servants inside the palace. Cain was glad that DG was keeping her head down, not wanting her to see. She had already been labeled as somewhat strange by many of those who had come to work in the palace, and in the past . . . ten minutes since he had talked to Jeb, the tale of what she had done had already spread like a wildfire.

A steward approached them, an older man who Cain knew and trusted, and the Tin Man nodded a greeting.

"Find Ambassador Raw and have him come to the princess's quarters."

"The ambassador is in a meeting with Her Majesty and her re-established council."

Cain mentally cursed. As proud as he was of the Furball, Raw's new appointment as Ambassador to the Viewers certainly kept him away when he was needed.

"How long is the meeting expected to continue?"

"I do not know, Commander, they are discussing the reuniting of the realm."

"Then send someone to the hospital wing to fetch clean towels and washcloths, and have them brought upstairs to her rooms immediately. You're going to the kitchens to get ice."

"Yes, sir," the steward nodded smartly and turned down another hallway as Cain led DG upstairs to her suite.

Finally pushing the door to her sitting room open, followed closely by a maid carrying a small stack of towels, Cain caught DG as she nearly collapsed and helped her lie down on the small couch that faced the room's fireplace. He took a towel from the maid and carefully laid it down under DG's head.

"Hold on for a second, Deege," he murmured as he stood. "I'll be right back."

She nodded, and the Tin Man headed to the bathroom to wet one of the washcloths under the cold tap. Wringing it out, he strode back into the sitting room. "Here, Kiddo, this won't irritate it as much." He handed her the damp cloth, taking a quick look before letting her hold it to her face. The doors opened again, and the steward blew in carrying a tray with a small bucket of ice. Cain took it, stopping the man before he could turn to leave. "Carlson, you're going to wait right outside the door. If I don't like how this looks in five minutes, I'm sending you down to get Raw."

The order had not been threatening, but Carlson swallowed nervously and nodded, and the Tin Man let him go. Cain's icy-blue gaze fell on the maid, who was still standing silently nearby as though she was trying to remain unnoticed. His glare turned into a scowl, sending the woman running for the door. Cain shook his head, turning back to the couch and kneeling on the ground near DG's head. He took another of the towels and folded it around a small handful of ice before holding it to the girl's nose. "You let me know if this gets too cold, okay Kiddo?"

"Okay," she murmured, blinking uncertainly, her eyes bright as though she were sick. Cain frowned, his fingers going to her wrist to check her pulse; it was beating a weak but rapid tempo under his fingertips.

"Can you look at me for a second, Princess?" There was something he didn't like about this; if he didn't know any better, he'd say she was going into shock. Her nosebleed might have been bad, but it shouldn't be affecting her like this already. Still, his handkerchief was heavy with blood, and a bright red tint was already starting to appear on the washcloth she held. When she turned her head toward him, he saw her pupils were dilated. Forget whatever he had said about five minutes, they needed Raw and fast. "Carlson!" he craned his neck to yell over his shoulder. "Go get Raw, _now!_"

There was no reply from the other side of the door, but Cain could hear the steward's rushing footsteps disappear down the hall. "Deege, listen to me," he turned back to the princess, trying to keep the panic out of his voice. "I need you to take some deep breaths and try to get your heart to slow down. Your magic's acting up more than it should and it's affecting how your body's reacting."

"It's causing my nosebleed?" DG's voice was incredulous, even as she coughed slightly and tried not to gag around the bitter taste in her throat.

"Seems like it. Your magic's been growing pretty fast lately, and it's drainin' you. Drains are funny things, they affect every mage a little differently. Come on now, try and relax, Raw should get here soon."

He saw her try to take deep breaths, swallowing uncomfortably, but it surprised him that she was much calmer than he expected her to be. All things considered, that could be either good or bad, though he could feel her start to shake again.

Raw finally burst through the door, his dark eyes concerned. Halfway across the room, however, he suddenly stopped and backpedaled several paces; it was almost as though he had run into a wall. The Viewer shook his head, blinking furiously as if he was trying to clear his vision, and Cain saw a flicker of uncertainty cross the empath's face before Raw continued across the chamber and knelt next to the couch. His serious gaze regarded the princess for a long moment, his face masked over with what almost looked like fear, and Cain frowned at Raw's behavior; he'd never seen the healer hesitate before.

"Raw, can you heal her?"

Chocolate brown eyes met blue, and the Viewer nodded, gently rested a hand on either side of DG's face once the Tin Man removed the ice. The area around his hands glowed faintly as his gift flowed into the young woman, though his brow suddenly furrowed as if he was trying to concentrate. Watching the healer, Cain didn't realize that something was wrong until DG winced quietly, her hands tightening into fists and her knuckles turning white. "Raw, what's going on?"

"Not healing, something not allowing injury to heal."

"It's hurting her?" The Tin Man's voice was incredulous. He remembered well enough that being healed by a Viewer wasn't the most pleasant experience, seeing as having that process sped up brought all the pain that would have been felt anyway and packed it into those few moments, but even when he had been bitten by that Papay it hadn't been unbearably painful. This was just a nosebleed; under normal circumstances it shouldn't even hurt but tears were trickling out of DG's eyes and he could tell that she was fighting not to move away from Raw's touch.

The Viewer nodded solemnly, tilting his head slightly as he stared at the princess, his usually warm eyes suddenly hard and cold.

"DG must hold still," he murmured, his voice serious and laced with a low growl that neither human had ever heard from the gentle empath. "Whatever is blocking gift is causing pain, hurts more than should. Raw not know why, but must break through to heal."

The young woman nodded uncertainly, coughing again as her frightened eyes flew to Cain.

"Hold my hand, Deege," the Tin Man ordered quietly, taking her free hand in his as Raw once again placed his hands on the princess's face. The dark brown eyes closed, humming softly as his fingers began to glow, his forehead creasing in concentration. Cain could see tears forming in DG's eyes again, her jaw clenching as she tried not to cry out and her fist tightening on his hand as her entire body tensed in its fight to hold still. Raw's quiet growl slowly increased in volume until it was almost a snarl, making it sound like the Viewer was feeling threatened, but after several long minutes the glow from his hands disappeared and he fell backward to sit on his heels as his arms fell limply to his sides, his eyes suddenly tired. The second Raw's touch disappeared, DG pulled herself into a sitting position and scuttled backwards, practically climbing over the arm of the couch in an attempt to get away from the Viewer. Raw seemed unsurprised, but Cain couldn't figure out for the life of him what had just happened or why the princess had leapt away from the empath as though she was scared.

"DG needs to sleep, rest, otherwise drain get worse," Raw sighed, refusing to look at either the princess or the Tin Man. He got wearily to his feet, looking suspiciously as though he was suffering a drain of his own, and shuffled across the room and out the door without glancing back.

Promising himself to bring that up with the furball later, Cain turned to the princess.

"Calm down, Deege, let me take a look at your nose."

The young woman glanced at him, her eyes wide with fear, but she finally settled down enough for him to rest his hand on the top of her head and tilt it back. He carefully pried the damp washcloth from her hand and cleaned away the last few streaks of red that trailed down her face, frowning slightly at the faint bruises that colored the sides of her nose. He had never known a Viewer's gift to cause an injury. "Why don't you lie down and get some sleep, kiddo? Right now that's the only thing that will help with your drain."

DG 's face crumpled in a tired scowl even though she had just aid earlier that she wanted to lie down. He could tell that she was fighting the idea.

"Can you stay here?" she asked quietly.

"What?"

"Can you stay here? Just . . .stick around? I don't really want to be alone, at least not while I'm sleeping."

"Sure, I can do that. You just gonna lie down out here? Or do you want to go back to your room?"

DG glanced over her shoulder toward the door to her bedroom, fighting off a shudder. Sleeping in there was all but inviting the nightmares.

"I'll stay out here," she murmured.

"Alright." He glanced around for a moment, finally spotting the old wooden chest sitting next to one of the room's overstuffed armchairs. "Go ahead and lie down." He stood and strode to the chest, lifting the lid and pulling out two of the quilts that had been folded up inside. Bringing them back, and swiping a couple throw pillows off of the aforementioned armchairs, he steadied her as she curled up facing the back of the couch, slipping a pillow under her head and draping the quilts over her.

"Thanks, Cain," DG whispered, blinking uncertainly before finally letting her eyes fall closed.

"No problem, Deege."

* * *

"_The majestic queen of the O.Z._

_Will bear two lovely daughters she._

_The first, to light she will be shown,_

_The second, to darkness, will be drawn . . . ."_

Pale eyes flashed, followed by darkness and cold, dark eyes. Cold gusts of wind, a sky at dusk, crazed wings beating the howling air above her head.

"_The first, to light she will be shown,_

_The second, to darkness, will be drawn . . . ."_

Power, pure and unadulterated, pulsed in her veins, heat gathered in the palms of her hands as the room around her ignited, the fire as dark as the room she was in, fighting back the pale light of day.

"_. . . .it is foreseen_

_Light faces dark in a stillness between."_

A blast of power, unleashed and uncontrollable, meeting its equal in both strength and ferocity, the world suddenly exploding in light and sound as fire ate away at the edges . . . .

DG awoke with a gasp, her heart pounding in her ears as she fought to catch her breath. The room was dark, and for a long minute she didn't know where she was. Fighting down the panic that rose in her throat as images of the green sarcophagus and a dark cave flashed through her mind, she forced herself to breathe, clutching the blankets around herself as though they had the power to fight off the darkness. Light flickered behind her, and as her heart finally settled she heard the soft crackling of a fire. Terror washed through her again at the thought of her nightmares coming true, but the only warmth she felt was a painful burn in the palms of her hands. Prying her fists away from the quilts, she held her hands up to her face to try and make out anything that could explain the blistering heat, but just as quickly the sensation disappeared and her tired mind was left grasping for an explanation.

"Deege? You awake?"

She twitched at the question, having completely forgotten that she wasn't alone. She couldn't find her voice right away, instead sitting up and turning over so she could lean against the arm of the couch, pulling the blankets around her in a snug cocoon. "Kid?"

DG finally turned toward Cain, who was sitting in an armchair with his feet propped up on a small footstool, another quilt draped over his legs and his duster and fedora hanging over the back of the chair. "You alright?"

"Nightmare," she murmured, shivering slightly as though a breeze had just drifted by. "What time is it?"

"A little after ten. I didn't want to wake you up to go to bed; I figured this was the most sleep you've gotten in a while."

"Yeah . . . ."DG swallowed around the lump in her throat, her tired eyes roaming aimlessly around the room. "Um, I'm going to go soak in the tub for a while. Do you mind sticking around?"

"Sure, I can do that."

"Thanks." It was with an almost-visible effort that she released the blankets from around her shoulders and slowly stood. She could feel his eyes on her back as she trudged away from the firelight and disappeared into her bedchamber. An old t-shirt and flannel sleep-pants surfaced after a quick rummage through a dresser drawer, and finally the cold wooden door of her bathroom clicked shut behind her as she turned the hot tap on full-blast. Waiting for the tub to fill, her gaze turned to the sky outside her window. The dark night huddled up close to the glass, there were no stars to pin it back in place. She remembered hating nights like this on the Otherside, always looking for that one tiny star to push the darkness away. Now she wanted to break through the walls, to find herself outside in the night that seemed to call to her, asking her to join it. She felt as though she would give anything to stand out on the balcony for a few minutes.

_As if Cain would even consider letting me do that at this point_, she thought to herself. _He's worried enough as it is, especially after what happened with Raw._

But, what _had_ happened with Raw? She turned to the mirror over her sink, her fingers grazing over the bruises that the Viewer had left. The healing had seemed to be as painful and as draining for the gentle empath as it had been for her, and though he had tried to keep his gaze diverted she had seen the bewilderment in his eyes that matched that which masked the Tin Man's face. And for her, it had just been terrifying. _I'm surprised Cain let me out of his sight. If I tried to get out onto the balcony he'd probably think I was planning to jump._ That was ridiculous, and as soon as the idea popped into her head she pushed it back out, turning back toward the tub and rolling her eyes though somewhere she wished that it was just slightly more ridiculous. Maybe if it was, she'd be able to get past the Tin Man and out into the night air. She didn't care for how long, just a few minutes would be fine.

A cold wind suddenly gusted past her, and she looked around in confusion when she suddenly realized that she was standing on the balcony just outside the antechamber where Cain was dozing. The shock seemed to ebb slightly when she took a lungful of the cool night air and immediately felt her nerves settle, but that didn't answer the question of what she had done. Ducking into the corner formed by the wall and the balcony's guard-rail so that Cain wouldn't see her, she tried to turn over in her brain what had just happened. All she could come up with was the fact that she had really wanted to get out of the room. Realizing that she'd have to get back in without the Tin Man noticing, she tried telling herself that she really wanted to get back into the room, only to be frustrated when nothing happened. When a second and then a third attempt provided no results, she finally turned toward the terrace's doors, giving in to the fact that this was yet another unexplainable event that she'd have to find an explanation for. A frigid chill washed over her, spreading from the top of her head all the way down and causing her skin to crawl. But the warm steam of the bathroom instantly warmed her again, and she lunged for the tap's handle to turn it off before the water spilled over. She sat down on the wide ceramic rim of the tub, her brows knitting as she tried to process everything.

Fireballs. Energy balls. Rogue streaks of magic that turned her friends into creatures that only the most imaginative authors on the Otherside could come up with. Now, this, whatever it was.

Thinking over what she had done, she slowly stood. Imagining herself back on the balcony, she did a slow turn and felt that chill creep over her again before she found herself once again outside. Immediately, she tried again, completing a half-turn while picturing herself inside her bathroom, standing in front of the mirror.

She watched herself materialize in the shiny pane of glass, the broken lines and patches of color that formed what almost looked like a DG-sized blob straightening out until her own face stared back at her, creased with a combination of shock, anxiety, and fear.

Fireballs and energy balls, rogue magic, and this. What was this? Some sort of teleportation, obviously. Shimmering?

Her troubled blue eyes met themselves in the glass, and seeing them only sent her anxiety rocketing to another level.

What was going on with her?


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Here's Chapter 3 for you guys! Sorry this took a little longer than I wanted it to, this story kind of has its moments. Thanks to everyone who auther/story alerted, added this story to their favorites and reviewed! And big thanks to The Dark Insomniac for beta reading for me!**

**AN 2: I'm starting to draw in some info from the Oz books, but unfortunately it's been a long time since I read any of them. If you've read the books and you spot anything (probably not in this chapter, but in later chapters) that isn't right, please let me know and I'll change it. A lot of this information I got from wikipedia, and some of it I made up, so help from anyone who is better versed in the literary land of Oz is welcomed.**

**Disclaimer: if you recognize it from somewhere else, it's not mine. This story is written for entertainment purposes only.**

* * *

"Well, _obviously_ I wouldn't have left this place looking like _this_," Glitch grumbled as he flipped through a disorganized pile of papers he'd found on the floor. "I don't think I would have tolerated it. If my memories are anything to go by, I was a bit of a neatnik, and probably a stuffed shirt to boot."

Raw chuckled breathily at the advisor's evaluation of himself, and the brain in the tank beside him twitched slightly as if in indignation. Glitch grinned at Ambrose's reaction, thought they both knew he'd only been joking.

The three of them were down in Glitch and Ambrose's old lab, and the brain and the Viewer were sitting near a half-buried desk as Glitch tried to make sense of the chaos that had been left behind. The headcase and empath had become a constant for each other, much like Cain and DG were, and they were reassured in knowing that the eclipse had not marked the end of their friendship as well as the end of their wild trek across the zone. Raw had used his gift frequently over the past few weeks to connect the advisor and his brain, hoping to help Glitch with his memory. Since it was uncertain as to whether Ambrose could be put back together again, Glitch was thankful for the Viewer's help.

"Ambrose says witch was looking for something," the seer growled.

"Ah, probably the plans for the sunseeder. I'd bet fifty platinums on it," the headcase grinned as he looked over a large blueprint for a moment before rolling it up and putting on a shelf. Turning back towards the mess, however, he paused, his brow furrowing. "No, wait. There was something else she was trying to find."

* * *

"Cain?!" Az's brown eyes were panicked as the Tin Man rounded the corner, both of them skidding to a stop in the middle of the corridor.

"Where's DG?"

"I don't know! I thought she would be with you!"

"I went to get her for her lessons this morning, but she wasn't in her chambers."

"Tutor hasn't seen her today, nor have mother and father." The princess leaned against the wall, huffing quietly; an action so un-princess-y that Cain thought it would have been humorous if it weren't for the situation. "What has been going on with her? Ever since the eclipse she's been acting so strange."

"I don't know. All I do know is that she hasn't been sleeping right, and with the way her magic has been growing it's keeping her drained."

"I don't understand why her magic is doing this to her. Even when magic grows quickly it shouldn't cause a drain unless the mage is constantly testing the limits the magic has."

Cain frowned, his brows knitting as he thought back to the tree incident a few days ago.

"I don't think it's her that's testing the limits."

"What do you mean?"

"What if it's not her that's testing the limits of the magic, but the other way around? What if her magic's testing her?"

"That's impossible! Magic doesn't do that, is unable to do such a thing."

"I don't know, Princess, there's something not right about this."

"Commander Cain! Princess Azkadellia!" a voice echoed down the hallway, and they both turned to find a young page running toward them.

"Jeremy, what is it?" Az quickly stood upright as the boy approached, and Cain wondered briefly at her use of the page's first name. It wasn't a practice the royals tended to use much, but Az had been using the first name of every servant in the palace; it was almost as though she was trying to put the past fifteen annuals behind her and start over.

"We've found your sister, she's in the library."

"The library?"

"I believe so, Your Highness. But she's locked all the entrances, including the servants' doors, so no one has been able to speak to her."

"We'll get to her," Cain growled, turning to Az and nodding his head. "Let's go."

* * *

"What, Glitch?" Raw was out of his seat, gently shaking his friend's shoulders. "What do you remember?"

"There was something else Mesphita was looking for," Glitch muttered, turning back towards the bookshelves he had just spent all morning organizing.

"Mesphita?"

"That was the name of the Dark Witch of the South. She needed the plans for the sunseeder, but there was something else." Long fingers danced over the stacks of books, dark eyes reading embossed titles for a moment before he paused again. "But I can't remember what."

* * *

Cain scrubbed a hand over his face. Four main doors, three servants' entrances, all locked.

"She's gotta be in there, it's the only reason why no one else can get in."

Az flicked her hand, trying to unlock the door using her magic, but it was as useless as it had been for every other door.

"She must be using her magic to keep them all locked. Why would she lock herself in a room? And why the library?"

"I don't know. But we have to get in there. Even if she's alright, we need to talk to her."

"Shoot the door."

"What?" Cain's eyebrows shot up his forehead. He might have expected a suggestion like that from DG, but not the heir to the throne.

"Shoot the door. We need to talk to her, and she won't let us in there on her own."

The Tin Man sighed, slowly pulling his revolver from its holster.

"As you command, Highness."

The explosion of gunfire ricocheted around the hallway, the sound bouncing off the walls and echoing through the palace. "So, if I get in trouble, I can blame you, right?"

"Just say that my evil side took over for a moment."

Cain threw a glance at the older princess, who merely shrugged one shoulder as a grin crossed her face, and slowly pressed one hand to the door. The doorframe splintered slightly as they entered the library, but other than the sound of crackling wood the room was silent. The Tin Man and princess exchanged a glance, and Cain shook his head slightly before his icy gaze continued to take in the vast room. As far as he could tell, there was no movement among the bookshelves on any of the floors.

"Kid?"

"Deege? Are you here?"

"What do you want?"

The two spun around to face the bookshelves above the door, where it sounded like DG's voice had come from, but a loud clap of sound that echoed back from the stacks somewhere deeper in the room had them twisting around again.

"We want to talk to you," Az replied. "We're worried about you."

"There's nothing to talk about, I'm fine." That blast of sound again, this time coming from the shelves to their left.

Cain frowned at the tone of DG's voice. Ever since the whole incident with the tree in the garden, the young woman's temperament had hit every extreme he had thought possible: the near-panic that had caused her to destroy the tree in the first place, the fear that had repelled her from Raw and that woke her from sleep that night, the fiery anger that she had set against her entire family at supper two days ago when the subject of her magic lessons had taken a wrong turn, and the combination of all three just yesterday when he had finally approached her about the ears and tail. It had taken him close to two hours to finally calm her down enough that she wasn't hyperventilating and her hands were steady enough to remove the spells. Now, her voice was apathetic, void of any emotion, and almost monotone.

"You know you're not, kid," he spoke into the room, twisting around again as that weird clanging noise sounded again several times in succession. "You haven't slept in three days, and you're barely eating."

"Deege, come talk to us. We're worried about you." Az's voice was surprisingly devoid of fear, though Cain knew she was more worried about her sister than she was letting on.

"I don't _want_ to talk!" A wave of magic suddenly washed through the library, sending chills down Cain and Az's spines and causing the hairs on the back of their necks to stand on end. "And I _don't_ need you to worry about me." Another loud _clang_, and DG was suddenly at the shelves over the door again, halfway up a ladder and reaching for another book to add to the two she already held in the crook of one elbow. The others spun around to face her, and even though she was at least a dozen feet above them they could not miss the pale, almost translucent quality to her skin and the dark circles under her eyes. "Despite what everyone seems to think, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I grew up for fifteen years without people falling over themselves to help me, I don't need to start now."

"Years?" the older princess asked before she could stop herself; she was still unfamiliar with many of the terms from the Otherside, though everyone in the palace had been working hard to understand everything that DG said. Still, now was not the time for an OZ/Otherside translation.

"Years . . . annuals . . . fuck it!" DG growled, another wave of magic radiating off her as she disappeared from sight and that loud noise bounced around the vast room once again. "Besides; you, mother, and father seemed perfectly content to forget about me before, I don't see why you feel the need to suddenly remember that I exist. I found the emerald and saved the OZ, what else do you need from me?" Another echo, from far toward the back of the library, and her voice trickled back towards them. "Now just leave me alone. For once I'd like to work on something that doesn't involve people yelling at me or telling me that I'm doing something wrong."

One eyebrow rose on Cain's forehead. DG had just gone from raging anger to quiet self-pity all in the course of about five minutes. Another rapid-firing of sound blasted from the back of the library, though the girl seemed intent on avoiding them and therefore stayed away from the front shelves.

"Are you bored yet?" Az sighed, casting a mischievous glance at the Tin Man.

"Oh yeah," he grumbled.

Another wave of magic flowed around the room, different from the ones that DG had let off, and Az glowed with a faint white light. An angry exclamation erupted from the princess that had hidden herself among the books and both Az and Cain stumbled as the room suddenly shook when the two sisters' magic collided.

"Let me _GO!_" the younger woman shrieked from her hiding place, the room shaking again as she forced her light against her sister's. Had DG been fully rested, she might have stood a chance against Az's much weaker light, but as it was even the magic that seemed to be taking her over wasn't strong enough to stand against its sister gift.

"No, Deege!" Az replied, her eyes flashing as she struggled to keep her magical hold on the younger woman. A blast of magic fired through the room, knocking books off shelves and finally toppling Cain backwards into the door. Az, however, stood firm, taking advantage of her sister's drain to get the upper hand and finally pull DG from among the bookshelves.

* * *

"Great Gale! What in the name of Dorothy was that?" Glitch wondered aloud as the palace shook on its foundation, small clouds rising around them as the laboratory cleared itself of fifteen annuals of dust. He glanced around, slightly off-balance with a stack of books on one arm and a bundle of blueprints tucked under the other, and frowned to himself. He could have _sworn_ he'd already put these on their shelves.

Raw's dark eyes were alarmed as he clutched Ambrose's tank.

"Raw not know," he murmured, barely getting the words out before another quake shook the floor beneath their feet. Glitch shifted his weight to catch a teapot on the toe of his shoe. The Viewer's face suddenly paled. "DG."

"DG's doing this?" Glitch queried, wondering how the teapot had gotten from its shelf above the Ozian Encyclopedia of Rare Elements onto his foot. Oh, right, DG. "That's impossible! She doesn't have that kind of ability!"

"Not DG."

"Of course it's not, like I just said . . . ." his voice trailed off, replaying their conversation over in his mind. "Wait, what?" Another tremor blasted through the palace, effectively knocking the headcase over as another cascade of books fell off their shelves.

"Raw have to go, help DG."

"Alright," the advisor replied blandly, still trying to catch up to the conversation even as the Viewer hurried out the door. He finally righted himself, brushing dust from his coat as he glanced around at his lab. "The witch really did a number here," he muttered. "This is going to take me annuals to clean up."

* * *

Cain was finally able to stand upright as Az's light dragged the weary princess from her hiding place, translucent ropes of magic binding the young woman's arms to her sides. Even now she was struggling, trying to break free, but the will to fight had completely left her after the short but violent battle. Seeing the bright streams of blood trickling down her face, he immediately reached for his handkerchief.

"You got her?" he asked quietly, glancing at Az.

"She's not going anywhere," the heir replied, her worried gaze fixed squarely on her sister.

The Tin Man hurried over to where Az's magic had set DG down, kneeling next to the young woman and clamping his handkerchief firmly over her nose as he wrapped his other arm around her shoulders. Her small frame was shaking uncontrollably, her chest heaving as she fought to breathe, but as Cain pulled her into an embrace she suddenly choked out a frightened sob as her eyes filled with tears. With the lack of sleep and the sudden adrenaline crash combined with the magic drain, the young princess was falling apart.

"Easy, Kiddo, you're okay," he murmured, sighing in relief when Raw peered in the door. "Az, hold on to her." DG looked up at Cain's quiet order, locking eyes with the Viewer and immediately struggling against her bindings.

"_NO!"_ her voice wavered. "You can't! You _can't!_"

There was that hesitation again, but Raw steeled himself and quickly approached them, kneeling in front of the young woman and holding his hands to her face. DG whimpered as he healed her nose, fighting to get away from the Tin Man and Viewer, "Let me _GO!_"

Raw growled low in his throat, and tears streamed down DG's face when trying to get away from Az's magic and Cain's firm hold proved fruitless.

"Just hold still, Kid," the Tin Man spoke quietly, trying to calm the young woman. When Raw's hands finally moved, the bruises that spread from the sides of her nose across her cheeks were dark, ugly ink stains against DG's pale skin. Raw placed one hand against her forehead, humming softly.

"Sleep, DG," he commanded, barely able to hold his own gift against DG's weakened light. The girl fought for a moment before her eyelids drooped and finally closed and she collapsed in Cain's arms.

* * *

Glitch hummed happily as he reorganized his bookshelves, making a mental note to himself to buy a new teapot, blissfully oblivious to the goings-on in the palace above him and, indeed, quite unaware of anything beyond cleaning his lab. Dust motes drifted in the air around him and overall it was quite enjoyable, being along in one of his favorite rooms in the whole palace, with nothing to disturb him except the occasional earthquake or unsolved mystery. . . .

He frowned suddenly, wondering briefly where _that_ idea had come from before that particular train of thought derailed itself and he went back to sorting through his books. He _tsked_ at the vast amount of loose paper that seemed to be floating around, wondering what exactly the witch had been looking for when she had ripped his lab apart at the seams. _Probably the plans for the sunseeder_, he chuckled, but paused again. _No, wait, there was something else she was looking for._

* * *

There were ten whole seconds of dead silence before any one of them moved. The glowing strands of magic that had bound the young woman slowly disappeared when Az released her magic and rushed forward to catch Raw as he came close to collapsing himself. Cain let out a breath he felt he'd been holding for hours, his senses finally kicking back into gear as his own adrenaline rush calmed down. Panicked voices echoed in the hallway outside the library, the measured step of the Royal Guard pounding the floors as they responded to what was, for all intents and purposes, an attack on the palace. The door opened again, and Jeb's eyes widened to the size of saucers as he took in the scene and the four figures crouched on the floor of the library.

"Father?"

"Call off the guard, Jeb, it wasn't an attack. Send someone to find the queen and consort and have them meet us in DG's quarters."

"Glitch in lab," Raw muttered weakly, leaning heavily on Az's shoulder as he fought off a drain of his own.

"Then send someone to get Glitch and Ambrose, and two others to help Az and Raw upstairs. We've got a problem."


End file.
